Monteillet Fromagerie

Fantastic Cheese, Great People, Fun Get-​away
My wife and I Just returned from a two day farm stay at the Gite, the guest house on the property, and the two-​day cheese making class. This was one of the more unique and enjoyable experiences we have done in a long time. People talk about the joys of un-​plugging from daily life but this experience is about plugging-​in to a completely different lifestyle and experience for most people and feeling the rhythm of life on a farm.
To start, they make fantastic cheeses and on our arrival Joan prepared a tasting plate of their cheeses, armed us with a bottle of wine and we headed out to the table in their new outdoor kitchen where we were immediately welcomed in by Joan, Pierre-​Louis and some of their friends who were testing out the new wood-​fired pizza oven. The immediate feeling is that you are not just guests, you become part of the family while you are there.
The Gite was great and the fridge was stocked with eggs from the farm, the most amazing bacon from the pigs they raise, hand-​churned butter, and old-​style glass milk and cream bottles with fresh Goat/​Sheeps milk (never tried it before and the freshness and faint hint of straw was amazing) and cream.
The cheese making class was a fascinating way to really understand what it takes to produce «real» cheeses and an appreciation for the hand-​crafting and art involved. We opted both days for the farm-​lunch which is really a mid-​day farm dinner made by Joan and served family style at the table in their home, accompanied by a glass or two of wine, before heading back to complete the afternoon cheese-​making.
And all of this accompanied by the welcoming graciousness and engaging conversations of Joan and Pierre-​Louis.
Highly recommend this if you are looking for a unique experience.

I had the delighted pleasure of touring the fromagerie and farm yesterday, and I spent nearly 2 hours there in total bliss. The people are very knowledgeable and friendly, the farm is in fantastic shape, they have an amazing and huge garden, the goats and sheep are as friendly and curious as the resident dogs and, of course, the cheese.
Where do I begin? They range from sharply tart sheep’s milk Greek-​style yogurt (which may be the most perfect food ever), fresh chevre (and herbed chevre that made my toes curl), some brie-​style cheeses (in particular, the one with paprika dusted on the outside was fantastic) that each have a very unique and different flavor, and our family favorite, the hard cheese. The hard cheese is nutty, full-​bodied, and I could eat it on everything.
When they have enough to sell, they also sell chicken and duck eggs, fresh produce, fresh organic meats, and sheep and goat milk. Rumor has it they will begin serving gelato at the local farmer’s markets and in the farm store, as well.
Find their amazing goodies at the Richland, Pasco, Walla Walla, and Portland, OR farmers markets… and in a lot of restaurants in that area. Definitely try their wares… you will NOT be disappointed.

I met Joan Monteillet today at the Pasco Farmer’s Market. As I walking through the market, the business banner got my attention, the cheese samples got me interested, and the Laguiole steak knives she was using meant she was serious!
A very personable lady, Joan was happy to share her cheese samples of everything they make and their stories.
As I was with the 84 year-​old roommate, I didn’t spend a lot of time sampling, but I purchased the Causse Noir and Le Roi Noir to enjoy at home.
What a great thing to have a nearby artisanal cheese source. Thanks Joan! Cheers!

Super tasty cheese!
Came Saturday for the cheese tasting and I was blown away by the taste of every one of the eight cheeses we sampled. Right now, the cheese is 95% goat, 5% sheep’s milk, using the milk collected from free-​range animals raised on-​site. Can’t get more local than that.
For $ 10, we tried their: cardebelle, larzak, le roinoir, provencal, feta, causse neir, causse blank and wasabi-​ginger chevre. Everything was really tasty and after much debate, we left with the feta and the provenchal in hand.
Who could resist the provencal, some of its ingredients include truffle oil, garlic, rosemary, olive oil, savory, peppercorn… drooling yet? I don’t blame you, it’s good.
They are open to the public for tastings Friday and Saturday noon-​5pm. You are welcome to wander around the farm, see the goats and sheep (the baby goats are super cute) and the garden. Wine pairings are available for an extra $ 5.
k, that’s all I got for you, go try the cheese, it’s fabulous!

Over the years, I’ve trudged up and down the Touchet sneakily scouring for tricky trout. During my adventures, I’ve noticed a unique house along the stream’s shores. This house had a goat-​shaped sign with «Monteillet» on it. For years, I wondered what it was. I eventually found out it was a fromagerie, or goat cheese «factory».
I always thought it cool and out of place to find something like this amongst the palouse and wheat fields, but I am a goat cheese-​making illiterate.
I wanted to get educated.
I emailed the Monteillet and made contact. I had friends visiting, and I thought it would be a treat to visit the fromagerie. So, we scheduled a tasting. I corresponded with Jessica, and this ended up being the person who gave us a tasting (I did talk to one of the owners, Joan, on the phone, and she was super nice, and also pointed us to the actual fromagerie when we pulled into the driveway).
Jessica is someone who’s interned with Monteillet & has also learned about cheese-​making in France. Her welcoming demeanor and text book knowledge of cheesemaking was felt within seconds.
Monteillet doesn’t officially open its doors for tastings for a couple more weeks (tastings are $ 10/​person & a little more with a wine pairing). Right about NOW is when the fromagerie is hopping. The painfully cute baby goats are starting to get weened & the mommy goats are peaking with their milk. You could tell the farm was hoppin’.
So, we made our way in to the tasting room. One must be forewarned of the aroma. Cheese is definitely in the house and the nose knows. But HEY, it’s cheese, so it’s worth the aromatic suffering!
The tasting room is a little small, but it was perfect for our party of four. We saddled up to the bar and Jessica already had an array of their cheeses ready. Two of us opted for just the cheese tasting while a third chose to have a wine pairing as well (the fourth tried finding a clothes pin for his nose).
Jessica walked us through something like 5 – 7 different cheeses, and we also tried a Mexican chocolate on some of them as well (YUM!). Jessica was the best of hosts. We were all a bit taken aback by how young she was because her breadth of cheese knowledge was astounding and she was the best host.
She talked about how things are really coming together for Monteillet. They’ve been featured in some national magazines, are staged to tour Farmer’s Markets (I saw the owner Joan at the one in Pasco last weekend), and were also in an NPR piece (
). At the moment, they are also putting the finishing touches on an exquisite outdoor dining area (for tastings, events, visiting chef presentations, etc.).
Overall, we had the best experience here. Wouldn’t anyone like to get a personalized tour of a farm?! The goats and sheep were also cool to see (the baby goats clearly stole the show [they were painfully too cute!]…as well as the big lumbering and sweet doggies walking the grounds).
We all ended up buying quite a load of cheese. I bought a full round of a soft cheese, and also a quarter wedge of the hard cheese (my fave). The names of the cheeses escape me, but there wasn’t a non-​excellent one in the bunch – it was just hard to pick one to buy.
WARNING: the smell can be potent. You should have a tupperware container at the ready when you get home, otherwise your kitchen/​house will explode with cheesiness! But if you’re like me, you won’t mind. In fact, you might be trying to figure out a way to bottle the smell for cologne (the ladies, must like this smell, right?).
The cheese has been excellent, and I can’t wait to make another trip to the fromagerie!

The Monteillet Fromagerie is an artisan cheese-​maker from the Walla Walla valley area. Check them out at Portland PSU Farmers market on Saturdays. All the cheeses are from goat or sheep’s milk and turn out very creamy. I’m a fan of rich cheeses, so you should try them out too if you have similar taste.